I’m Looking at an Empty Pipeline

In our latest 21 Hats Podcast episode, we introduce a new regular, Lena McGuire, whose startup is off to a great start but does have some marketing work to do.

Good Morning!

Here are today’s highlights:

• President Trump denies he’s taking a more thoughtful approach to tariffs.

• A lot of hiring managers still ask employees about their salary history.

• The Supreme Court’s 2024 regulatory decisions may hinder Trump’s regulatory agenda.

• The world’s most expensive spice is becoming an American cash crop.

THE 21 HATS PODCAST

I’m Looking at an Empty Pipeline: This week, in episode 228, Lena McGuire—in her first appearance as a regular on this podcast—tells Paul Downs and Jaci Russo about her plans to turn her hobby, remodeling homes, into a real business. In just her third full-time year of building Spóca Kitchen & Bath, Lena says she has already experienced both a quick rise in revenue and then a surprising decline, a decline she attributes mostly to marketing issues. One of those issues, she says, is that she refreshed her website and it started producing more prospects—but fewer qualified prospects. That said, Lena is off to an impressive start, having targeted a well-defined niche, having created a clear process to connect homeowners and contractors, and having demonstrated both a real need for her services and an ability to learn from her mistakes. “I don’t look at failure as failing,” she says.

• Plus: Paul tries to explain why his revenue surged 50 percent in 2024. Now there’s a problem we’d all like to have.

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